Write us a Review

ENT

ENT

The ear, nose and throat all play important roles in our overall health and wellbeing. When you can’t hear correctly, have painful swallowing or suffer from sinus infections, these ailments prevent you from being able to fully participate in life. At Andros ENT & Sleep Center in Inver Grove Heights, MN, we help patients receive treatment that fits into their lifestyle, from a team that treats you like family.

Ear Treatments

Audiology

Audiologists study hearing and balance. All of the audiologists at Andros ENT & Sleep Center have a Doctorate degrees from accredited institutions, earned a Certificate of Clinical Competence from the American Speech-Language Hearing Association, and are Minnesota Department of Health licensed. The audiologists and physicians work closely together to ensure that your hearing loss is comprehensively treated.

We treat the following ear and hearing-related conditions:

Hearing Loss

Tinnitus (Ear Ringing)

Cerumen Impaction

Middle Ear Otitis Media

Speech Delay

Outer Ear Canal/ Swimmer’s Ear Infection

Benign Positional Vertigo (BPPV)

Meniere’s Disease

Mastoiditis

TM Rupture/ TM Perforation

Cholesteatoma

Vertigo/ Dizziness, Hematoma

Torn Earlobe

Keloids

Skin Cancer

Auricular Deformity/ Prominent or “Cup” Ears

Hearing Aids

We offer patients a wide variety of brands and versions of hearing aids, so we can ensure that we find a set that is comfortable, functional and effective for your needs. Our audiologists will perform hearing tests that will determine your level of hearing loss and your current hearing ability, which will help us decide which set of hearing aids is the right solution for you.

Our Guarantee: If for any reason you do not like your hearing aids, you can return them within the trial period and pay only the fitting fee. We are confident in our ability to help you “Hear to Enhance Life.”

Testimonials

Testimonials coming soon!

Ear Infections

Otitis Media is a middle-ear infection, the most common type of ear infection. It occurs when tissues in the middle ear become inflamed because of either a viral or bacterial infection, and often there is a buildup of fluid and inflammation behind the ear drum that causes pain and pressure. Symptoms include ear pain, hearing loss, balance issues, fever, irritability and problems with speech.

Antibiotics can usually successfully get rid of an ear infection. Surgery is sometimes needed if there are multiple infections or the fluid in the middle ear space is persisting. Ear tube surgery is a method used to treat chronic ear infections. During an ear tube surgery, a tiny tube is inserted into the tympanic membrane (ear drum) so that the middle ear space and mastoid (bone behind the ear) are ventilated, drainage of any fluid that accumulates is facilitated and as well allows for direct, topical treatment of ear infections.

Swimmer’s Ear/ Otitis Externa

Swimmer’s Ear, often caused by water in the ear canal, especially if not chlorinated such as well or lake water, frequent Q-tip use , or skin conditions such as dermatitis or psoriasis. Diabetics are particularly vulnerable to this type of ear infection and should be evaluated as soon as symptoms begin. Mild symptoms include itchiness, redness and some drainage, while moderate symptoms include more severe itchiness and pain, decreased hearing, drainage of fluid and/or pus or pain when chewing. Swimmer’s Ear is severe when you experience immense pain, fever, loss of hearing, and swelling of lymph nodes and the side of your face.

Treatment usually includes prescription antibiotic ear drops, after a thorough cleaning out of the ear canal. Sometimes a wick is placed which acts like a funnel to get the medication deep in the ear canal and maintain it in constant contact with the ear canal. Depending on the severity of symptoms and if diabetic or immunocompromised, oral antibiotics are also prescribed.

Nose Treatments

Sinusitis

Otherwise known as a sinus infection, sinusitis affects millions of people every year and causes many missed days of work and school. It is usually caused by a viral or bacterial infection and can worsen due to allergies. It is rarely of fungal etiology. Acute sinusitis is with inflammation of the sinus (es) lining and may have fluid present within the sinus cavity/ies. It becomes chronic sinusitis if symptoms are present for more than 3 months. At Andros ENT & Sleep Center, we can help detect and treat sinusitis as well as difficulty breathing through the nose, nasal polyps, deviated septum, allergic rhinitis, nasal fracture or abnormality, and epistaxis.

Dr. Rosario is excited to be on the cutting edge of nasal polyp treatment by offering the SINUVA (mometasone furoate) Sinus Implant! It is FDA- approved for adults who have had previous sinus surgery and have recurrent nasal polyps. SINUVA is a non-surgical option that is placed during a routine physician office visit and is clinically proven to reduce nasal congestion and polyps. Patients with a known hypersensitivity to the mometasone furoate drug or any of the ingredients in SINUVA should not use SINUVA. The area around SINUVA should be monitored by a physician for any signs of bleeding, irritation, infection, or perforation. For full safety info, visit www.SINUVA.com.

Symptoms of sinusitis include:

Facial pain or pressure

Pain in the upper teeth

Headache

Swelling or redness around the eyes

Decreased smell and/or taste

Bad breath

Fatigue/ irritability

Fever

Watery/itchy eyes

Post Nasal Drip

Head congestion, aggravated when bending

Runny nose, difficulty breathing through the nose

Difficulty sleeping

Very rarely, when sinusitis is left untreated and progresses, it can cause brain abscess, meningitis, Cerebrospinal fluid leak, orbital abscess, vision loss and potentially death.

Fungal sinusitis when noninvasive is caused by a ball of fungus located most often in the maxillary sinus. This often occurs in people with diabetes, allergies or reduced immunity, and it usually requires surgery. Invasive fungal sinusitis is rare but threatening to organs such as the eyes and brain and requires immediate medical and surgical intervention. If is often life threatening.

Treatment

Usually, sinusitis is treated with antibiotics, steroids,saline nasal sprays or nasal steroid sprays, antihistamines and decongestants, . If these treatments don’t work, we take a sinus culture to determine which bacteria is causing the infection and what would be the best antibiotic to use. For chronic sinusitis, we perform a CT scan of the sinuses. Our Xoran MiniCT emits the lowest dose of xray beam needed, works with image guided navigation systems, and we are CT certified by IACTL. The scan is done with you seated and takes about 1 minute to perform which makes it an excellent tool for imaging kids and older adults.

If indicated, we will perform surgery based on your CT scan. This can be performed in a hospital, at an outpatient center, or potentially in the office. Recovery is generally one week but often less when done in office. Postop bloody nose and facial pain are the main side effects.

Balloon Sinuplasty

Your browser does not support HTML5 video.

Balloon Sinuplasty is a treatment for chronic sinusitis and is often done in office.

When medication isn’t enough to solve the problem, we perform an in-office Balloon Sinuplasty, a minimally invasive treatment used for both adults and children to dilate the opening to the sinuses. It is less painful and requires less recovery than traditional sinus surgeries with comparable benefits.

Testimonials

Testimonials coming soon!

Throat Treatments

Tonsils

The throat includes four groups of tonsils: Palatine, Lingual, Adenoids, and Nasopharyngeal. Their size is rated on a scale from 1 to 4, which helps determine when they reach a dangerous size and need to be removed.

Palatine

These are the tonsils at the back of the throat that most people think of when they think of tonsils. When they are infected or become too large, they can cause sleep apnea, snoring, difficulty swallowing and bedwetting.

Lingual

These tonsils are located at the back of the tongue, and when they get infected, which is rare, they can cause a lot of difficulty with breathing and swallowing.

Adenoids and Nasopharyngeal

Located in the back of the nose, these tonsils can cause difficulty breathing through the nose and are usually inflamed by sinus and ear infections.

Tonsillitis

Symptoms of Tonsillitis include:

Pain in the throat

Ear pain

Pain when opening jaw

Pain when swallowing

Halitosis/bad breath

Fever

Fatigue

Deeper voice

Dehydration

Tonsillitis can cause ear and sinus infections, as well as problems in the cardiac valve, neck abscesses, and strep. Treatment involves antibiotics, flushing of the throat, and steroids. Our team will use a Xoran MiniScan to determine the best treatment for you.

For more information regarding any of our ENT treatments or for any questions regarding your symptoms, contact us at 651-888-7800.